List of Maps and Illustrations vii -- Acknowledgments ix -- Note on Transliteration xi -- Preface xv -- Prologue Zenith 1 -- Chapter One The Fall of the Safavid

Nader Shah, ruler of Persia from 1736 to 1747, embodied ruthless ambition, energy, military brilliance, cynicism and cruelty. His reign was filled with bloodshe

Nader Shah, ruler of Persia from 1736 to 1747, embodied ruthless ambition, energy, military brilliance, cynicism and cruelty. His reign was filled with bloodshe

It is the year 524BC, and the Assyrian king, Shalmaneser V, is enraged when he finds out that Hoshea, King of Israel, one of his vassal states, is seeking the h

A "fresh...thrilling" (The Guardian) account of the Graeco-Persian Wars. In the fifth century B.C., a global superpower was determined to bring truth and order